 When I was a sales rep early in my career I used to joke that the accounting department should be called the Anti-Sales Department. It just seemed that the more sales we made, the more stressed out and hard to deal with that department became. Remarkably, most of today's company business offices are very good about supporting the sales function and using technology to actually make sales easier. Perhaps in this sobering business climate, where literally every sale counts, everyone is on-board with whatever it takes to make sales happen.
Look closely to see if your company has one
The Anti-Sales element could be another department within your organization, but it could also be a person, a clique, technology or even the whole company. Any person or policy that makes selling difficult, clunky or otherwise less appealing to your buyers is Anti-Sales at work. This can range from seemingly minor offenses-such as a receptionist being rude to callers-all the way to major transgressions like that new paperless technology that frustrates your buyer s to the point of insanity.
Make a commitment to stamp out the Anti-Sales Department
- Hire a secret shopper to go through your company's entire buying process and see where the cogs in the system lie.
- Find out what your reps are apologizing for to their prospects and then fix it if you can.
- Stop bending your sales process around one or two quirky, anti-salespeople within your organization. You know who they are.
- Review internal systems which make it hard for your salesforce to get what they need, including marketing materials, support, answers to questions, funding, etc.
- Audit your phone system, website and other technologies to make sure that prospects can navigate it easily, find what they need, and most importantly reach who they need to reach without stress or frustration.
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Ever wonder why your prospects don't call you back?
Watch the movie on YouTube.
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Equipping Managers with Tools For Success in any Business
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